Once-powerful Republican lobbyist's life in ruins

R.G. RATCLIFFE, HOUSTON CHRONICLE |
May 26, 2010

AUSTIN — For nearly 20 years, San Antonio lawyer W. James Jonas III was one of the more influential Republican lobbyists in Austin and Washington.

Jonas' life now is the wreckage of a messy divorce prompted by battles over two autistic children, new age medicines and another woman in his life. He has lost his job, his clients and his freedom, jailed for 180 days for more than $100,000 in unpaid child support.

“A lobbyist in jail is a devil without a cause,” said Jonas, clad in an orange uniform and talking over a scratchy visitor's booth phone in the Bexar County Jail this week.

Jonas says the judicial portrayals of him as a “deadbeat dad” are misplaced when he has paid his wife almost $500,000 in child support and medical care for their children the past three years.

Jonas, 48, blames his incarceration on a vindictive spouse who wants to hold him to support and medical payments of $11,000 to $18,000 a month despite a decline in his income.

But his wife Charlotte's lawyer said Jonas is a smart, stubborn man who would rather stay in jail than pay what he owes.

He was the go-to guy

Stints in the county jail are a far cry from Jonas' days as a go-to guy for those wanting to reach out to the state's Republican leadership.

Jonas in the past decade donated $250,000 to state officials, including $116,000 to Gov. Rick Perry. Jonas' website features photos of him with Perry, U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison and childhood friend, Speaker Joe Straus. His clients have included AT&T, the city of San Antonio, gambling interests and new age health interests, including the weight loss supplement Metabolife.

Jonas was flying high in 2006, when he was earning nearly $47,000 a month. That was the year he met network marketing consultant Rhonda Castle. Jonas and Castle later began dating, and Jonas' wife filed for divorce in 2007, after learning of the affair. A divorce trial is scheduled for June 21.

At the same time his marriage was falling apart, Republicans lost control in the nation's capital.

“When the years were good for Republicans in D.C., James was doing well,” said friend and lawyer Manuel Pelaez-Prada. “James was one of the last (Republican lobbyists) to turn out the lights. And then the economy hit.”

Pelaez-Prada said Jonas saw a decline in his income and started having trouble keeping up the expensive child support payments. During the 2009 Texas Legislature,

Jonas was having to spend one day a week in jail while bringing his child support payments up to date.

Attorney: Hiding assets

Jonas said his employer, Holland & Knight, let him go after the session and he went to work for Texas Capitol Advisers on salary.

Jonas sold his car and his expensive shotguns, liquidated his 401K, forewent $56,000 in IRS payments and declared bankruptcy.

District Judge Michael Peden ordered Jonas to jail for 180 days on April 5, Jonas said, because his wife's lawyer convinced the judge he is hiding assets.

Jonas said his wife was able to do it because she comes from a wealthy Alamo Heights family.

Charlotte's lawyer, Sam Bashara, said the only reason Jonas is in jail is that he refuses to meet child support obligations he agreed to.

Bashara noted that Jonas has spent more than $50,000 in the past year fighting child support orders.

“We don't want him in jail. We just can't figure out how to get him to do what the court has ordered him to do,” Bashara said.

Jonas said as long as he sits in jail he makes no money. His delinquent child support will grow by about $66,000 while he is incarcerated.

He said if he can get back to work, he could at least make a partial payment.

“When an oil well misses the production mark, we don't blow up the oil well,” Jonas said.